JPS5918499Y2 - Operation knob - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] The present invention relates to an operating knob, and in particular includes a light guide that guides light along the operating lever from a predetermined position behind the operating knob (hereinafter simply referred to as the knob) to the front of the knob. By emitting light from the front of the knob, the position of the knob can be confirmed even in the dark, and operation of the knob is not hindered. In addition, a locking pawl made of a leaf spring is provided to make it easier to assemble the components. This invention relates to a knob that is easy to attach and detach from an operating lever.

Conventionally, it has been considered to illuminate the knob attached to the tip of the operating lever so that the position of the knob can be seen even in the dark. There has been a method of illuminating the knob with light from a light emitting source.

However, the former has drawbacks such as the knob itself being large-sized, which places restrictions on where it can be used, and the structure being complex, which complicates the assembly process, leading to increased costs.

Furthermore, in the latter case, since the knob has a deep color tone, mainly black, the irradiated light is absorbed, making it difficult to sufficiently confirm the position of the knob.

Therefore, in order to improve the lighting effect, this type of light source must use a higher luminous intensity, which increases the power consumption of the light source and also increases the brightness difference with other meters. These problems caused problems such as loss of balance and glare for the driver.

Therefore, in order to solve this problem, the applicants of the present application previously proposed an operating knob with a new structure completely different from the conventional one in Utility Application No. 52-136654, which had a light source built into the knob itself. The knob is equipped with the function of emitting light using external light, making its presence clearly visible even at night or in a dark place.

Now, to explain this based on FIG. 1, 1' is a knob, and this knob 1' consists of a transparent member 1'a made of transparent synthetic resin, and an opaque member 1'a covering the side surface of the knob 1'a. ′
b (generally colored black).

A light source 4 is provided on the housing 3' side in a space surrounded by the indicator case 2' and the housing 3'.
' emits light from the light transmission hole 5' to illuminate the back surface of the knob 1', and the light that enters the transparent member 1'a of the knob 1' is emitted directly or after being reflected by the side door. The light reaches the front of the knob and is radiated into the air from the front of the knob, causing the front of the knob to shine and its presence to be confirmed.

Thus, the above-mentioned conventional problems can be solved to a certain extent.

However, according to the studies conducted by the inventors of the present invention, it has become clear that this method includes many problems that still need to be solved.

That is, in the structure shown in FIG. 1, the indicator case 2' needs to protrude forward from the housing 3' that accommodates the actuating part of the operating lever, and the light transmitting hole 5' is required to be located near the knob. It is necessary to provide one.

In addition, in order to increase the brightness of the front surface of the knob, there is a light transmission hole 5.
' has to be made large, which results in dazzling the driver, and conversely, there is still the disadvantage that if the driver is to be avoided, the illumination of the knob will be insufficient.

The present invention has been developed in view of the above circumstances, and is intended to solve all of the above problems. a knob body made of a non-light-transmitting material, and a light-transmitting material inserted and arranged in the through hole, extending from the front end surface of the knob body to the rear end surface, and further extending rearward from the rear end surface. a light guide which is fitted into the through hole of the knob body to close the front opening of the through hole and is provided with a hole into which the tip of the light guide can be inserted. The rear end of the light guide, which includes a locking pawl made of a spring material bent into a shape of a letter and extends rearward from the rear end surface of the knob body, serves as a light receiving part for receiving light from the light emitting source, and the guide body The distal end of the knob is inserted into the hole of the locking pawl to serve as a light emitting part, while the operating lever inserted into the through hole of the knob body from behind along the light guide is operated by the elasticity of the locking pawl. The reason is that it is held in place by force.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be explained in detail based on FIGS. 2 to 6, which show an embodiment of the present invention.

In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes the main body of the operating knob, which is a truncated quadrangular pyramid with a slight inclination, is made of a non-transparent material such as black or dark-colored plastic, and is provided with a through hole 6 inside.

A protrusion 1a is provided on the inner side of the upper part of the knob body 1, and grooves 1b are provided on both inner side surfaces of the knob body 1.

The light guide 2 inserted into the through hole 6 of the knob body 1 is made of a transparent synthetic resin, such as acrylic resin or polycarbonate resin, and has a front protrusion 2a at the tip and an upward protrusion 2b on the upper surface near the tip. are provided, and side protrusions 2C, 2 that can fit into the groove 1b are provided on both rear side surfaces.
C, and the rear end is provided with a rear slope 2d that is inclined at approximately 45 degrees in the longitudinal direction of the knob body 1, and the rear end slope as a whole becomes narrower as it approaches the wider front protrusion 2a. It is formed into a roughly wedge shape.

Moreover, it is fitted into the through hole 6 of the knob body 1, and the through hole 6
The locking pawl 3 that closes the front opening of the locking pawl 3 is made of a band-shaped spring material bent into a U-shape, and is further bent inward at an acute angle at a bending portion 3b at a position where it abuts the protrusion 1a at the upper part thereof. The tip 3C is configured to abut the upper protrusion 2b of the light guide 2 from the rear, and its lower part is bent inward at an acute angle at a new bend 3e near the tip 3d. A protrusion 3f directed toward the conductor 2 is formed.

Further, the closed portion of the locking pawl 3 is provided with a hole 3a into which the front projection 2a of the light guide 2 can be inserted.

As for the material of the light guide 3, polycarbonate resin (light transmittance 90%, refractive index 1°586) is used as described above, the surface is mirror-finished, and the area around the light guide 3 is kept in air. It is surrounded by a layer (with a refractive index of 1°0).

In this configuration, when assembling the operating knob, the procedure is as follows.

That is, the bent portions 3b, 3 of the locking pawl 3 are inserted from the front of the knob body 1.
e into the through hole 6 until the bent portion 3b abuts the protrusion 1a of the knob body 1.

At this time, the front opening of the through hole 6 is closed by the locking pawl 3.

Next, insert the front protrusion 2a of the light guide 2 into the through hole 6 from the rear of the knob body 1 and fit it into the hole 3a of the locking pawl 3, and at the same time insert the side protrusions 2C on both sides of the light guide 2 into the knob. Main body 2
The locking claws 3 are fitted into the grooves 1b on both sides of the
The upper tip 3C is brought into contact with the rear side surface of the upper projection 2b of the light guide 2.

In this state, the light guide 2 has the side protrusion 2C and the groove 1b.
It is prevented from moving forward and also from moving in a direction perpendicular to its longitudinal direction.

Then, the locking claw 3 comes into contact with the upper protrusion 2b at the tip 3C,
Since the bent portion 3b abuts against the protrusion 1a of the knob body 1, the light guide 2 is also prevented from being pulled out rearward with respect to the knob body 1.

Further, the front projection 2a of the light guide 2 is fitted into and held by the "JL3a" of the locking pawl 3, and the locking pawl 3 itself is held within the through hole 6 of the knob body 1 by its elastic force.

Therefore, after the light guide 2 and the locking pawl 3 are assembled to the knob body 1, they become one and it becomes difficult to remove any of them.

Next, to attach the operating knob to the operating lever 4, as shown in FIG. do it.

Here, the projection 3f applies an appropriate pressing force to the operating lever 4 by the elastic force of the locking pawl 3, so that the operating knob can be stably attached to the operating lever 4.

In addition, when the operating knob is to be removed, the operating knob can be pulled out from the operating lever 4 against the pressing force of the projection 3f.

In the operating knob mounted at a predetermined position on the operating lever 4, the light emitted from the light source 5 is totally reflected on the rear slope 2d of the light guide 2, as shown in FIG. The light is also totally reflected on the inner surface of the body part 2 and is converged without being weakened toward the front protrusion 2a, and the front protrusion 2a becomes a light emitting part and is emitted to the outside.

In this case, since the rear inclined surface 2d is formed wide, it receives more light emitted from the light source 5, and as it gets closer to the tip, it becomes narrower, converging the light and increasing the density. This increases the brightness of the front protrusion 2a and makes the front projection 2a emit light more vividly.Therefore, even if the amount of light from the light source 5 is small, it is possible to emit light more effectively.

In this way, in this embodiment, the length of the rearward protrusion of the light guide 2 can be freely determined, so that the operation knob and the light source 5 can be adjusted freely.
The relative position with other related devices can be left to a free design, and the light source 5 can illuminate the operation knob using surplus light from other lighting sources instead of a dedicated light source. .

The illumination has a fantastic glow similar to fluorescent light in the dark, and there is no danger of dazzling the driver.

As mentioned above, in the present invention, it is extremely easy to assemble the components of the operating knob, and once assembled, the connection is secure, and the operating knob can be easily attached to and detached from the operating lever. In addition, it removes design restrictions for operating knobs, light sources, and other related devices, allowing for free design.Furthermore, it eliminates the small amount of light left over from other lighting sources. It can be used to illuminate operating knobs, and does not cause any glare to the driver.
This also has the effect of confirming the position of the knob in a dark place and making it difficult to operate the knob.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory cross-sectional view showing an example of an operation knob illumination mechanism. FIG. 2 is a front view of one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a rear view thereof. FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line A-A in FIG. 2, and FIG. The figure is an exploded perspective view of an operating knob according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] An operating knob that is attached to the tip of the operating lever, and includes a knob body made of an opaque material and having a through hole penetrating in the front-rear direction, and a knob body that is inserted and arranged in the through hole and in front of the knob body. a light guide made of a translucent material that extends from the end surface to the rear end surface and further extends rearward from the rear end surface, and is fitted into the through hole of the knob body to close the front opening of the through hole; A light guide that extends rearward from the rear end surface of the knob body, and includes a locking claw made of a spring material bent into a U-shape, the closed portion of which is provided with a hole into which the tip end of the light guide can be inserted. The rear end of the guide is used as a light receiving part that receives light from the light emitting source, and the tip of the guide is inserted into the hole of the locking pawl to serve as a light emitting part. An operating knob characterized in that an operating lever inserted into a through hole of the knob body is held by the elastic force of the locking pawl.